schweiger and w



W. F. SCHWEIGER AND W. J. BALKWILL.

ENVELOPE MOISTENING MACHINE. APPLICAUON FILED JAN= 3|, I929.

1,426,78 1, Patented Aug. 22, 1922.

5 SHEETSSHEET I,

m E T0 s m ATTORNEY W. F. SCHWEIGER AND W. J. BALKWILL.

I ENVELOPE MOISTENING MACHINE,

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 3!. I920- Patented Aug. 22, 1922. 5 SHEETS-SHEETZ.

, INVENTORS %B% Q k Mu ATTORNEY w. F. SCHWEIGER AND w. J. BALKWILL.ENWEL'OP'E MOISTENING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED JAN. 3h I920.

1,426,781. Patented Aug. 22, 1922.

5 SHEETSSHEET 3.

Al y} H I I V 1; INkQYTOIE ATTORNEY W. F. SCHWEIGER AND W. J. BALKWILL.

ENVELOPE MOlSTENlNG MA CHINE. APPUCATION FILED JAN-3|, 1920.

1 ,42 6 ,7 8 1, Patented Aug. 22, 1922.

5 SHEETSSHEET 4.

aw-ATTORNEY -w. F. SCHWEIGEH AND w.1. BALKWILL.

ENVELOPE MOISTENING MACHINE.

APPFICATION FILED JAN. 31,1920- Patented Augl 22, 1922.

5 SHEETSSHEET 5.

m, ATTORNEY.

UNITE STATES PATENT OFFICE.

XVILLIAM F. SCHWE IGER AND WESLEY J. BALK'WILL, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK,ASSIGNORS T0 MULTIPOST COMPANY, INCORPORATED, 015 ROCHESTER, N EW YORK,

A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

ENVELOPE-MOISTENING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patentd Aun' 22, 1922 Application filedJanuary 31. 1920. Serial No. 355,326.

To all whom/515mm] concern:

Be it known that we, \YILLIAM F. Sorrwinone and lViisLnY J. BALKWILL,both c1t1- Zens of the United States of America, residing at Rochester,in the county of Monroe and State of New York, have invented cer tainnew and useful Improvements in llnvelope-h'loistening Machines, of which'th following is a s ecification.

The invention relates to envelope sealing machinery, and its purposeisto afford mechanism which automatically and successively grips thelowermost one of a stack of envelopes, moistens the flap, and affixes itto the body of the envelope, these several opera.- tions being performedin a way to insure ac curacy in positioning and feeding the envelopeas'well as speed of operation.

in a more particular aspect, one of the purposes of the improvement isthe provision of novel mechanism that serves to prevent feeding of morethan one envelope at a time, by retaining the stack against movement,with the exception of the lowermost envelope, devices being providedwhich cooperate with the envelopes immediately above the lowermost one,and prevent them from coming into cooperative relationship with thefeeding means while the lowermost envelope is being ected.

Another purpose of the invention is to per mit feeding an envelope withthe flap extending downwardly beneath the envelope, with mechanism forproperly moistening the flap while in such lower position.

Additional objects of the invention are to be found in novel moisteningmechanism which insures a proper supply of liquid to the flap of theenvelope, and a simple and eflicient form of feeding means, which actsto select the lowermost envelope from the stack and feed it through'theapparatus.

The invention also consists in certain other features of improvement,which will be explained fully in the following description, taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawing, the novel features beingpointed out in the claims at the end of the specification.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a top perspective View of an apparatus illustrating apreferred application of the invention;

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view taken longitudinally Figure 3 is avertical sectional view taken longitudinally in another plane;

' Figure dis a bottom plan view; I Figure 5 is a transverse verticalsectional view;

Figure 6 is a detail perspective view of a portion of the feedingmechanism;

Flgure 7 is a side elevation of a the apparatus, and v Figure 8 is aplan view with parts removed.

There are a number of various ways in which the novel characteristics ofthe inventron may be adapted to practical operating structures, and themechanism about to be described is selected merely as an example, and isnot intended to limit the invention to any of the details disclosed.

The machine comprises a frame mounted upon legs A, the top of the framewhich constitutes the envelope supporting means being designated by a.Mounted upon the support (.1 an envelope hopper comprising a fixed sidewall a, and an inclined front wall a which forms an envelope barrier,permitting the lowermost envelope to feed under it. o is an adjustableside wall carrying a forward extension or guide a which lies on thesupport a, and also a bifurcated extension a adapted to overlie thebarrier (6 The extension (i is adjustable relatively to the barrier (1to vary the width of the envelope hopper, the extension (1, and theadjustable wall a being held in adjustable position by a suitable screwand thumb nut a.

The envelope support a has an opening or cutaway portion extendingsubstantially/ the length of the frame, as indicated by (17, and whichis surrounded by an envelope supporting ledge a located within theenvelope hopper, while a rod (t is carried by the wall a and arrangedoppositely to the ledge a to assist in holding the envelopes in thehopper. Arranged within the opening a is a table B occupying a positionbeyond the barrier a and in the path of travel of the envelopes.

portion of When the envelopes are stacked within the hopper, formed bythe wallsa, a? and a,

they aresupported by the ledge a and rod a", the opening or allowing theflap of the lowermost envelope to extend downwardly, as will appear moreclearly presently, while the table B receives the envelopes successivelyas they are fed through the machine, the flap of each envelopeprojecting beneath the table B at one side thereof to be moistened,before it is affixed to the body of the envelope. WVith the envelopespositioned with- 1 in thehopper, the lowermost one is engaged and kickedout by a feeding means that actuates the envelope across the table 13,as Wlll now be described.

The feeding means comprises abelt C (see Figure 3), which travels onpulleys c and c. The envelope is held in engagement with the feedingbelt by means of a U-shaped yieldable track D mounted above andstraddling the belt, and carried by a spring actuated arm 42 which ispivoted on the spindle (Z.

the belt C, and acting to force an envelope against the belt, while dare rollers carried by the track D and cooperating with the belt (3 toretain the envelope thereagainst and feed it through the machine, as thebelt is caused to travel by the mechanism to be described presently. Itis necessary to provide some means for automatically kicking out thelowermost envelope of the stack. or gripping it so as to bring it intofeeding relationship with the belt and overlying track, and this ispreferably accomplished by providing an abutment or projection onthefeeding means which will act intermittently to engage the stack ofenvelopes and eject the bottom one of the stack. In one form, thisconsists of an abutment or projecting portion 2 formed in the belt G atregular intervals. The mechanism disclosed in'cludesa belt-groove on thepulley c, said groove having a constricted portion 0 which cooperateswith the belt C, whereby when the belt engages the constricted portion,it is forced out of its groove partially, and away from its normalposition, forming the abutment or projection already referred to. Theabutment engages the underside of the lowermost-envelope of the stackand has a tendency to. lift it upwardly and partially move it inwardlytoward the table I and after. one or more operations of the abuti-nent 0the lowermost envelope is thereby carried alongfunder the track D" andis thence fed quickly through the machine by'the continuous travel'ofthe'belt C. The forward end of the table B is bent slightlydownwardly, as shown at 7), Figure 2,'in order to insure the body of theenvelope going above and to insure feeding of only one envelope at atime, additional means are provided for engaging the entering cdgesofthe envelopes and preventing their movement except in successive order,and j this mechanism will now be described.

A feed controlling device is provided, consisting of a guard,preferablyin the form of afiexible strip of rubber or similar material,

supported onthe upper side of the inclined barrier (6 as designated at E(see Figure The strip E is preferably arranged within a channel orhousing 6, detachably mounted on the barrier a and the lower end of thestrip E is free, resting upon the table B in the path of the envelopes.Thus the flexible strip is inclined from a point above the tabledownwardly and thence parallel to the table, and other means canbeutilized for maintaining it in this relation. strip E is providedwitha series of flexible fingers or projections, also preferably ofrubber, which yieldably engage the stack of envelopes and operate tohold back all but the lowermost one of the stack. The action of thefeeding means is sufficient to cause the lowermost envelope to overcomethe resistance of the flexible strip E, and force under the latter.Thefree end of the strip E is held yieldably against the table by aweight c'carried by a pivoted arm 6 i 'The table Bterminates at such apoint as to afford a free space (Z adjacent to, one

The

edge, see Figure '1, such space being for the purpose of receiving theflap of the envelope during the feed of the envelope through themachine. In order to insure passage of the flap under the table B, thereis provided deflecting means lying in the'path of the envelope andadapted to engage the same and bend a corner slightl y downwardly, so asto produce a slight bulge in the flap, and thereby cause the flap toreadily follow its proper course under the tableB. The deflectingmeansmay consist of a pivoted finger F,

see Figure 1, which is curvedupwardly in opposite directions, and liesat one side'of the table B, the lowermost surface of the finger F beingsubstantially flush with the under surface of the table B. The finger Fis carried by a weighted arm 7, pivoted on the spindle d. The flap ofthe envelope having been thus deflected to the underside of the table B,and with its gummed surface uppermost, is then brought into cooperativerelationship with a moistening device which will now be described.

Referring to Figures 2, 4t and 5, the moistening device preferablycomprises a rotary wheel or disk G, located under the table and mountedon a spindle g, which carries a pulley g for a purpose that will appear. The disk G is located in an inclined plane, with its upper edgelocated immediately under or approximately under the free edge of thetable B, as shown in Figure 5. The opposite or lower edge of the disk Gis positioned over a water tank H, which latter may be filled through anopening ll, see Figure 1. Arranged within the tank H is a watertransferring member in the form of a truncated cone of cork or othersimilar light material, as designated by h, the said cone being carriedon an arbor 7L whichis rotatable within bearings formed in springactuated arms 71 The arms if tend to actuate the cone h upwardly againstthe disk G, as

shown in Figure As the disk G is rotated, it engages and similarlyrotates the cone h. which thereby continuously carries a supply of waterto the under surface of the disk G, so that when the flap of theenvelope is brought into engagement with the disk G. it is properlymoistened.

The flap of the envelope is pressed against the disk (:1 by suitablemeans, preferably in the form of spaced, spring actuated fingers I,which are mounted onthe post i and are controlled by springs connectedto a second post 2' The fingers I have their free ends bearing againstthe moistening disk G, and as the envelope travels across the table, theflap moves in between the fingers I and the moistening disk G, and isheld with a light but sufficient pressure to apply a. proper amount ofmoisture evenly over the surface of the flap. After passing beyond themoistening disk, the flap is brought back into parallel relationshipwith the body of the envelope by a deflecting plate J, see Figure 9;,and is then affixed to the envelope by passing between pressure rollersK and K, the latter being mounted on spring actuating arms 70 which arepivot-ed to the rod (Z.

The roller K is mounted on a spindle which carries a pinion 73, which inturn is driven by the idler 70 the latter being driven by the pinion 70fixed on the arbor 7s The latter is the power spindle of the apparatus,and may be operated by the hand crank In or by any suitable powermechanism. The arbor 70 also carries pulley 0' already mentioned, andabout which travels the belt C, thus imparting continuous motion to saidbelt. The belt 0 engages the pulley g. sec Figure 5, to operate themoistening disk G, and the belt is held against the pulley g by asuitable belt tightener and guide Z, see Figure 4:.

The operation of the invention briefly described is as follows: A stackof envelopes is placed in the hopper so that their front edges followgenerally the inclination of the barrier M, with the flaps on theunderside and located adjacent to the wall a.- Upon setting the machinein motion, the feeding belt C, by means of its abutment or projection,kicks out or ejects the lowermost envelope from the stack until itsfront edge is engaged between the belt C and the overlying track D. Inthis feeding operation, the lowermost envelope passes under the loweredge of the barrier a and also under the flexible fingers of the guard Eresting upon the table B, the body of the envelope pass ing between theflexible fingers of the guard and the top of the table B. The corner ofthe envelope is next bent downwardly by the deflecting finger F and theflap thence passes under the table B and is pressed into Contact withthe moistening disk G, while the envelope travels across the table B.The flap is brought back to the top of the table by the deflector J, theenvelope thence passing between the rollers K and K, which affix theflap tightly to the body of the envelope.

The several features of the invention herein described are not limitedto the particular means set forth, but may be otherwise adapted topractical purposes by modified arrangements, without departing from theunderlying principles of the invention as set forth in the followingclaims.

lVe claim: I

1. An envelope moistening machine comprising supporting means having anopening to receive the downwardly projecting flap of an envelope, atable located in the path of travel of the envelope, feeding meansfonactuating the envelope across the top of the table, deflect-ing meanslying in the path of the envelope and acting to guide the flap to theunderside of the table, and a moistening device arranged beneath thetable and acting to moisten the flap of the envelope as the latter isfed across the table.

2. An envelope moistening machine comprising a table, one edge of thetable having a free space adjacent thereto so as to afford a space toreceive the downwardly projecting flap of an envelope, feeding means foractuating an envelope across the top of the table, deflecting meanslocated adjacent to the table and acting to bend a corner of theenvelope and thereby guide the flap under the table, and a moisteningdevice arranged beneath the table and acting to moisten the flap ()1 theenvelope as the latter i'edwover the table. g a

3. An envelope"moistening machine comprisinga table, feeding ineans t'oractuating Ban envelope across the table, deflecting means consisting ofa pivotedfinger located adjacent to one edge of the table and acting tobend the envelope {at one corner and thereby guide tli'eflap'oftheenvelope under the table, and a moistening device arranged beneaththe table and actingto-inoisten the flap oi the envelope as the latteris fed across the table. i 1' LYAn envelope moistening machinecomprising a table, feeding means for actuating an envelope across thetop of the table, defleeting means for guiding the flap of the envelopebeneath the table, a rotary nioistening disk located beneathtlie tableand in clining downwardly from one edge thereof, and means for pressingthe lap upwardly against said moisteningdisk.

5. An envelope moistening machine coinprising amtable, feeding means foractuating an envelope across the top oithe table, de-

fleeting means for guiding the flap of the envelope beneath the table, arotary moistening disk located beneath the table and inoliningdownwardly from one edge thereof, anda series ofspaced fingersyielda-hly engaging the flap of the envelope and holding it against saidmoistening disk.

6. An envelope moistening machine com- ;prising aftablo 'feeding meansactuating an. envelopeacross the table, deflecting means for guiding theflap of the envelope beneath the-table, a rotary moistening disk locatedunder the table, means for pressing the flap of the envelope againstsaid inoistcning 4O disk, a water tank, and a rotary water transferringmember located in the water tank and held yield'ably in engagement with;said moistening disk, the water transi'erring member actin to carry thewater from the tank to the inoistenlng disk.

prising a table, feeding means actuating an envelope across the table,deflecting means tor guidlng the flap of the envelope beneath e thetable, a moistening disk located under the table and inclined downwardlyfrom one edge of the table, means for pressing the flapoi theenvelope'against the mo-istening disk, a water tank located underthemoistening disk at one edge thereof, and a device rotating within saidtank and engaging the underside of the moisteningdisln 8. An envelopemoistening machine comprising a table, feeding means actuating anenvelope-Macross the table, deflecting means a 7. An envelopeinoistening' machine comfor guiding the flap of the envelope beneath thetable,a inoistening deviceloeated under the table, and spaced yieldahlefingers'engaging the flap of the envelope and pressing it against themoistening device. e

9. An envelope moistening machine comprising a table, feeding meansactuating an envelope across the table, deflecting means i for guidingthe flapof the envelope beneath the table, a. rotary moistening disklocated under the table and occupying an inclined position thehigherpart of the moistening disk being in position to engage the flap of theenvelope, a water tank disposed beneath the lower part of the moisteningdisk; and

a rotary member positioned within said tank .and yieldahly engaging thelower edge of the moistening disk.

In witness whereof, signed our names. e

YVILLIAM F. S'CI-IWEIGER.

\VESLEY J. BALKVILL.

we have hereunto

